Public blasts Schenectady budget plan

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They weren’t carrying pitchforks, but residents made it clear that they are more than just angry about the proposed 2.9 percent city tax increase.

Speakers said Mayor Brian U. Stratton is living in a fantasy world where he’s practicing “voodoo economics” that will force seniors out of their homes. They said he never should have been elected — and predicted he’d lose instead of winning in a landslide if his re-election was held this year instead of last.

“This is Schenectady, not Utopia!” said resident Pat Zollinger, one of seven irate speakers at Monday’s public hearing on the proposed 2009 budget. “Hello, we are in a depression. The time has come for all of you to get a backbone and say ‘Enough!’ Let’s all come back down to earth and start managing the city properly.”

She complained that under Stratton, the city budget has risen $21.3 million in five years. Of that, $20.5 million had been drawn from new, non-tax revenues, Stratton said, but Zollinger wasn’t impressed.

“Every other city, town and village is cutting,” she said “They’re not hiring. And you know why? Because we’re all hurting.”

The city has one of the lowest proposed tax increases in the area, at 2.9 percent. But hikes in fees more than double the total increase.

If the budget goes through as proposed by the mayor, the average homeowner in a house assessed at $80,000 would see a $67 increase in next year’s tax bill. The tax increase itself would add $28, but the homeowner would also pay $13 more for trash pickup, $11 more for water and $15 more for sewer service. The total bill would come to $2,393 before school and county taxes.

Resident Rich Rheingold said the council should take the fees as seriously as the tax increase.

“You add those up, it’s 23 percent,” he said. “You’re not counting them as taxes, but it is.”

Resident Carol D’Elisiis praised Councilman Mark Blanchfield for proposing cuts to the budget. She went on to say that the mayor’s budget proved he was out of touch.

“I’m not sure you’re aware of the total picture since your budget doesn’t help the city residents at all. This is not the time to focus on hiring, on paving,” she said. “This suggests the city of Schenectady is living in an economic fantasy world.”

Others agreed with that sentiment.

“It’s voodoo economics,” said resident Vince Riggi.

He said some seniors won’t be able to afford a tax increase, even though it is essentially the tax bill they paid in 2006. The non-fee portion of the bill went down in 2007 and 2008 due to tax cuts, but the total remains unaffordable, he said.

Resident Harry Brand appealed directly to the mayor to demonstrate fiscal restraint.

“Give up the car!” he shouted, referring to the mayor’s city-owned SUV. “There’s so many ways you could cut back, and you don’t do it.”

He went on to say most of the council and the mayor should never have been elected.

“It’s terrible, really and truly, the way you’re running the city. I’ll bet if there was another election tomorrow, a lot of you wouldn’t be here,” he said, before lamenting that residents had no better options than to vote for the Democratic slate that has easily coasted to a win in recent years.

“We didn’t have much of a choice,” he said. “I don’t think your chairman did a very fair job in putting up candidates for election. You can’t cut back on the budget! I’m wondering if you’re qualified to hold the offices you hold.”

MINORITY OPINION

Stratton did get one vote of support during the hearing.

Richard Antokol, a city businessman who is also one the mayor’s appointees to the Downtown Schenectady Improvement Corp., said the mayor’s tax increase was reasonable.

“Sixty dollars to $70 is the price today of a tank of gas for a pickup truck. We’re not talking about a lot of money,” he said. “If we can keep it to a tank of gas, that’s a pretty good job.”

But Riggi challenged the analogy, saying, “There are people who aren’t driving because they can’t afford the gas. We can’t afford any more taxes.”

Blanchfield seemed to agree, saying he is dedicated to producing a budget that has no tax increase.

“We will do this in a way that minimizes the effect on services and also on the people who work for this city,” he said.

Other council members publicly said they would support him, despite the mayor’s strong criticism last week. The mayor said Blanchfield would cut the budget unwisely just so he could win votes for his hotly contested Assembly race. Blanchfield is trying to unseat Assemblyman George Amedore Jr., R-Rotterdam, in the 105th Assembly District race.

Stratton seemed to regret those comments Monday. He offered a speech praising Blanchfield, specifically saying he had “great admiration” for him and respected the council’s role in reviewing the budget.

But he defended his tax increase as the best way to continue essential services in an uncertain year. He warned that if the state reduces city aid at its special session on Nov. 18, the council will need to search for emergency cuts.

“We may be back here again, amending, cutting, slashing,” he said, adding that he wouldn’t support cutting those items prematurely just to reduce the tax increase.

He described some of Blanchfield’s proposed cuts as “clear-cutting” and “scorched-earth” policies, citing in particular the proposed cut of $90,000 in additional road patching.

“Our infrastructure is crumbling around us. We must maintain a diligent schedule to repair and replace. If we let it go, those streets will get much worse,” he said.

He agreed that residents seem willing to sacrifice road patches to avoid a tax increase, but said they aren’t taking the long view.

“I’m elected to make the decisions that serve the most people possible,” he said. “In my opinion, this is not a frivolous expense, it’s not a luxury, it is absolutely essential.”